Chathuranga Dharmarathne

Macquarie University · Department of Biological Sciences

Background Dengue is a devastating viral disease transmitted by mosquito vectors of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus . Mosquito populations thrive in favourable breeding conditions, making mosquito control vital. Eliminating larval populations is the most effective method compared with other mosquito control methods. Synthetic chemicals such as o...

Sri Lankan Leopard Panthera pardus kotiya is the apex predator of Sri Lanka’s forests without dominant intra-guild competition for over ~5000–10,000 years. Therefore, P. p. kotiya has been identified as a potential “keystone” species that influences both the density of prey populations and the harmony of the natural ecosystems of Sri Lanka. This si...

The current consensus is that sexual selection is responsible for the rapid and diverse evolution of genitalia, with several mutually exclusive mechanisms under debate, including non-antagonistic, antagonistic and stabilizing mechanisms. We used the orb-web spider, Argiope lobata (Araneidae), as a study model to quantify the allometric relationship...

Arsenic is a highly toxic metalloid that forms different chemical s tates in nature, including arsenate and arsenite, as common inorganic forms. Exposure to arsenic may cause adverse effects on human health and the environment. Therefore, the detection of arsenic is critical. Exploring new approaches with low detection ranges and high sensitivity i...

Arsenic is a highly toxic metalloid that forms different chemical states in nature, including arsenate and arsenite, as common inorganic forms. Exposure to arsenic may cause adverse effects on human health and the environment. Therefore, the detection of arsenic is critical. Exploring new approaches with low detection ranges and high sensitivity is...

Sperm transfer in spiders is limited by both morphology and behaviour. Males transfer their sperm via secondary copulatory structures, the pedipalps. Sperm are not mobile at that stage and the ejaculate needs to move through narrow male and female ducts to until it reaches the female sperm storage organ. In many species of spiders, copulation durat...

Background: Sparganosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Plerocercoid larvae (spargana) of the genus Spirometra. We aimed to provide molecular evidence for the infection of amphibians with Spirometra sp. in the inside and outside of Horton Plains National Park (HPNP), Sri Lanka. Methods: The prevalence of sparganum infection in wild frogs (Truga...

Los datos obtenidos con cámaras de trampeo revelan la asociación con los hábitats, las pautas de actividad y la densidad de población del pangolín indio (Manis crassicaudata) en parque nacional Maduru Oya, en Sri Lanka. El pangolín indio (Manis crassicaudata) es un mamífero solitario de talla media nativo de Asia meridional. En el presente estudi...

The use of remotely triggered cameras for studies of bird ecology is uncommon. We used camera trap data from a survey conducted from January 2018 to April 2021, to analyze the habitat use and activity patterns of Sri Lanka Spurfowl Galloperdix bicalcarata which is known as a shy and secretive forest bird endemic to Sri Lanka. Study sites included p...

Breeding biology of the endemic Sri Lanka White-eye Zosterops ceylonensis was studied from January 2017 to January 2018 in the montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National Park, in Nuwara Eliya District of Sri Lanka. A total of 46 active nests were studied. Breeding occurred March–May. The peak egg-laying was in March and April. Mean nest constr...

Breeding biology of the endemic Sri Lanka White-eye Zosterops ceylonensis was studied from January 2017 to January 2018 in the montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National Park, in Nuwara Eliya District of Sri Lanka. A total of 46 active nests were studied. Breeding occurred March–May. The peak egg-laying was in March and April. Mean nest constr...

In spiders, sperm transfer from the male to the female is indirect via secondary copulatory structures, the pedipalps. At the time of transfer the sperm are not mobile and the ejaculate needs to move through narrow male and female ducts to the female sperm storage organ. In addition, copulation duration can be very short, often limited to just a fe...

The breeding biology of the endemic Dull-blue Flycatcher Eumyias sordidus was studied in the tropical montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National Park, Sri Lanka, from March 2016 to December 2018. Breeding ran from late March until June, and again from late August to October. Nestling diet was studied using a spotting scope, video camera and fa...

In spiders, sperm transfer from the male to the female is indirect via secondary copulatory structures, the pedipalps. At the time of transfer the sperm are not mobile and the ejaculate needs to move through narrow male and female ducts to the female sperm storage organ. In addition, copulation duration can be very short, often limited to just a fe...

Sri Lanka has a high rate of species endemism, making it a global biodiversity hotspot. Sri Lanka's biodiversity is crucial for tourism and socioeconomic activities. Sri Lanka has four species of wild cats: the Leopard (Panthera pardus), the Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus), the Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) and the Rusty-spotted Cat (Prionailurus...

Alien invasive species are a significant threat to biodiversity and ecosystems in nonnative geographical ranges. Ulex europaeus is one such shrub introduced to the montane grasslands of Sri Lanka. We conducted this study with the objective of evaluating the U. europaeus removal programs focusing on both positive and negative impacts that arose. Thr...

Conservation of rare and secretive forest species depends on appropriate prediction of habitat variability effects on their distribution patterns. Use of remotely triggered cameras for studies of bird ecology is uncommon. We used camera trap bi-catch data, recorded during a meso-mammal survey conducted from January 2018 to January 2021, to analyze...

96) Breeding Biology of Dull-blue Flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) in Tropical Montane Cloud Forests of Sri Lanka Abstract Breeding biology of Dull-blue flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) was studied in tropical montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National Park. The study was conducted from March 2016 to December 2018 during the breeding season and each...

Although rare, albinism has been observed in almost every vertebrate species on earth and it persists in wild animals in nature. Albino animals have been recorded and studied since Carolus Linnaeus in the mid1700s. A number of comprehensive lists of albino animals observed in the wild were published and numerous articles continue to be published to...

Many water birds such as herons, egrets, ibises and cormorants, nest together in large aggregations called breeding colonies. We observed a mixed breeding colony of wading and aquatic birds in Wasgamuwa National Park. In this colony we observed breeding pairs of Black-headed Ibis (Threskiornis melanocephalus), Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea), Purple Her...

Human-wildlife conflicts are an increasing problem as human land use encroaches on wildlife habitats. Augmenting farmers’ crops with orange trees through Project Orange Elephant has proven to be a simple and effective method for mitigating human-elephant conflicts in Sri Lanka. Similar endeavours could be applied elsewhere in the world. Chathuranga...

Sri Lanka is a bird paradise. The island supports a rich avifaunal diversity that stands at 453 species at present. At least 240 species of birds are breeding residents and 189 species are non-breeding visitors to this country. Among them 33 resident species are endemic to Sri Lanka. Mixed species flocking behavior is a common phenomenon in tropica...

The economy in Sri Lanka has long depended on agriculture as a major source of income. A third of the land area is under permanent cultivation, and marginal lands are increasingly brought into production. However, agriculture is the least dynamic sector of the economy. The number of small farmers employed in the sector is 80%. Most of them live in...

Breeding ecology of Indian Blackbird (Turdus merula kinnisii) was studied at the tropical montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National Park, situated in the highland plateau of the central highlands, from September 2015 to August 2018 within three consecutive days per month. This sub species is endemic to montane forests of Sri Lanka. There are...

Avian frugivory of three Bramble species: Rubus ellipticus, Rubus indicus and Rubus leucocarpus was studied in the tropical montane cloud forests (TMCF) of Horton Plains National Park (HPNP), in Nuwara Eliya district of Sri Lanka, from September 2016 to August 2018. Brambles of the Genus Rubus are common in high elevations above 1500m and many spec...

Tree cavities play a critical role in the life history of cavity-using species and thus are an important structural feature of forests. This is the first study to address cavity resources in tropical montane cloud forests in Sri Lanka. Therefore, nest-site availability of cavity nesting bird species was studied at the Montane Cloud Forests of Horto...

Sri Lanka White-eye (Zosterops ceylonensis) is a small passerine highland endemic bird in the white-eye family. It is a resident breeder in montane forests. This species can be distinguished by duller greenback and more extensive yellow on the breast. It has a darker patch between the eye and the bill. Though mainly insectivorous, also eat nectar a...

Interactions of Sri Lanka Yellow-eared Bulbul (Pycnonotus penicillatus) in the Mixed-Species Feeding Flocks (MSFF) at Horton Plains National Park (HPNP) was studied from September 2015 to May 2018. P. penicillatus is an endemic threatened bird, assessed under IUCN global conservation status of Near Threatened (NT) and the national conservation stat...

Cavities have long been known to provide energetic benefits to birds. Studies of microclimate in natural cavity nests of secondary-cavity-nesting birds are lacking, therefore, microclimate conditions during the incubation period of endemic Dusky-blue flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) were investigated in the Cloud forest habitats between 2100m-2300m el...

Present study was conducted at the Horton Plains National Park which is located on the southern plateau of the central highlands of Sri Lanka at an altitude of 2,100–2,300 m (6,900–7,500 feet). The Horton Plains National Park is one of the most important national parks of Sri Lanka. Its flora is represented by 57 species of vascular plants. The ver...

Aberrant pelage colour patterns such as albinism have been reported in some mammal groups including rodents. The observation of colour abnormalities in wild animals is an isolated event because these abnormalities are rare. Here report the first albinism record of the dusky-striped squirrel (Funambulus obscurus) in cloud forest habitats in Horton P...

Diversity and distribution of avifauna was studied at the tropical montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National Park, situated in the highland plateau of the Nuwara Eliya district from September 2015 to May 2016. Three main habitats were identified; cloud forest habitat, cloud forest die-back habitat and grassland habitat. Nine, 300 m line trans...

A SPI() /IRElSCII'lO J /i.l20). Keywox-ds: Sri Lanka Dull-blue flycatcher, endemic, Horton Plains, breeding, tropical montane cloud forest. Nest characteristics of endemic dull-blue flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) were studied at the montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National Park (HPNP) and surrounding habitats from January 2015 to January 2017...

Foraging behavior of endemic dull blue flycatcher was studied from July 2015 to July 2017 at the cloud forests, cloud forest die back forests and grasslands of the Horton Plains National Park located on the southern plateau of the central highlands of Sri Lanka. In each habitat three 100m fixed length transects were placed using Global Positioning...

The Sri Lankan elephant (Elephas maximus maximus) is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian elephant, and native to Sri Lanka. The behavior of wild Asian elephants is difficult to observe and study. Few studies have been carried out on the behavior of wild Asian elephants in Sri Lanka. Here we present some field notes on the unusual acroba...

Seasonal distribution of endemic, Sri Lanka Dull-blue Flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) was studied at Horton Plains National Park, situated in the highland plateau of the Nuwara Eliya District, during January 2016 to December 2016. Three main habitats were selected as Cloud Forest habitat, Cloud Forest Die-back habitat and Grassland habitat. Three, 10...

The diurnal time-activity patterns of the Sri Lanka Dull-blue Flycatcher Eumyias sordidus were studied during January to December, 2016 in Horton Plains National Park (HPNP). Focal sampling method was used to study the activity of E. sordidus. A total of 288 hours were spent to collect data. Three natural habitats were selected for study namely Clo...

Foraging behavior of endemic Sri Lanka Dull-blue Flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) was studied in the tropical montane cloud forests of Horton Plains National park (HPNP), situated in the highland plateau of the Nuwara Eliya District from July 2015 to July 2017. Three main natural habitats were identified as Cloud Forest (CF), Cloud Forest Die-back (CF...

Distribution of the Sri Lanka Dull-blue Flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) Distribution of the Sri Lanka Dull-blue Flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) was studied at Horton Plains National Park, from September 2015 to May 2016. Three main habitats were identified as Cloud Forest habitat, Cloud Forest Die-back habitat and Grassland habitat. Line transact metho...

Distribution of the Jungle Crow (Corvus levaillantii Lesson, 1831) and their potential threats to biodiversity was studied at the Montane Cloud Forests of Horton Plains National Park, of the Nuwara Eliya District at the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka, from September 2015 to March 2017. This species is distributed in every terrestrial habitat throug...

Diversity and Distribution of avifauna was studied at the Tropical Montane Cloud Forests of Horton Plains National Park, situated in the highland plateau of the Nuwara Eliya District from September 2015 to May 2016. Three main habitats were identified; Cloud Forest habitat, Cloud Forest Die-back habitat and Grassland habitat. Three, 300 m fixed lin...

Distribution of the Sri Lanka Dull-blue Flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus) was studied at the Montane Cloud Forests of Horton Plains National Park, from September 2015 to May 2016. Three main habitats were identified as Cloud Forest habitat, Cloud Forest Die-back habitat and Grassland habitat. Three, 300m fixed line transacts were marked in each of the...